Finding Joy through Gratitude: A Talk with Bracha Goetz

Bracha Goetz: 0:00

Gratitude is the price we pay for this lasting pleasure. It's recognizing all the gifts in our lives at every moment. I mean, we can't recognize all the gifts, but it's recognizing that we're gifted in every moment.

Porter: 0:20

Alrighty folks, welcome back to Transacting Value, where we're encouraging dialogue from different perspectives to unite over shared values. Our theme for Season 4 is intrinsic values, so what your character is doing when you look yourself in the mirror. Now, if you're new to the podcast, welcome, and if you're a continuing listener, welcome back. Today we're talking some of our November core values of gratitude, appreciation and resilience. Returning to contribute increased value from I think it was September 26, episode 13 from Season 3, called Helping Soul Shine. He's a children's book author and inspiration behind Getz Bookshop, raqqa Getz. So, folks, without further ado, i'm Porter, i'm your host and this is Transacting Value. Raqqa, how are you?

Bracha Goetz: 1:06

Oh wonderful. I love how you said that the inspiration behind the Getz Bookshop. No one's ever said that. I love that description. That's beautiful.

Porter: 1:17

I'm glad. Please feel free to use it. I'm glad I could help. I'm really Okay. I'm really excited to have you back. I love your personality, i love your perspective and I can't wait to see what sort of wisdom and joy and inspiration you drop into this conversation. So yeah, first of all, again, thank you for coming back. I appreciate it. Thank you, so happy to be back. Yeah. So for everybody listening and anybody who may be unfamiliar with our last conversation from last season, raqqa, let's just take a couple minutes. Who are you, where are you from And what sort of things have shaped your perspective?

Bracha Goetz: 1:54

Right now, i'm in Baltimore, maryland, and I also am living in Israel, too, some of the time. Yeah, so I went to Harvard. I'm the author of 41 books that help children's souls to shine That's what they all have in common And I'm the author of one memoir about my journey to joy in life.

Porter: 2:20

And so, obviously, your faith and your family and your experiences in life have helped contribute to some of these book themes. But what stands out to you? I guess what we're talking inspiration. What stands out to you to inspire you to continue writing and thematically tie these together?

Bracha Goetz: 2:37

Oh, that the world needs more joy, that children need to learn as early in life as possible happiness skills in order to really thrive in life. Yeah, that's what inspires me every single day.

Porter: 2:55

Well, it shows and I'm glad you don't try to hide it because it's contagious. So, yeah, I appreciate you being able to share it. And while we're talking about it, one thing that, for example, from season three last year that we didn't have at the time we recorded that we do have now is a segment of the show called Developing Character Developing Character Developing. Character. And so this particular I guess next couple of minutes is really meant for relatability for anybody who's listening and maybe new to the podcast, and the idea is if we start a conversation here at the beginning of, say, a 30, 40 minute window with topics like personal values and then we're able to figure out ways to identify in the line and showcase how they can influence whatever you've put into your brand, your business, your lifestyle, your perspective, how you socialize with other people, whatever applies in your life. if we can do it well, then so can anybody else. And being able to showcase the impact of personal values and how they do still have value in the world today, i think is important And so Braca for this segment. it's two questions. The first question what were some of your personal values growing up?

Bracha Goetz: 4:07

Growing up My parents. They were very unmaterialistic people And I think that value got into me. Truthfully, when my parents passed away, there was really very little to clean out from their apartment. They still lived in this little apartment. They didn't own a car, a house. It was incredible. They really were not attached to material things. It was not important to them in life. That's, I think, a very deep value that I got. So my father was a person who was, I would say, really one of the happiest people I ever knew And I think he had very little expectations about life, So he was basically happy with what he got. Those were values that affected me tremendously.

Porter: 5:01

I think contentment is underrated today. Yes, or maybe even appreciation, to a certain degree too, or at least for what's publicized, right? Not saying people aren't appreciative and gracious and content, but it's not something that we, you know. you don't hear about it in news headlines. It doesn't sell newspapers, right? No? So I imagine the reach for a newspaper that stands on I'm content not hearing more because I appreciate what I have Wouldn't sell very many editions Right Right. Sure Sure. And so then my second question, broca, for this segment. all that being said, what are some of your personal values now, if anything's changed?

Bracha Goetz: 5:41

Yeah. So I had a happy childhood. But when adolescence started I started questioning and life got much more difficult, even though, okay, i came from a good base. But life itself became confusing. All the messages like was I supposed to be career oriented or get married and have children? Like there was so many mess, oh, about being skinny and then how to make strawberry shortcake, like such confusion, such confusion, always confusing messages, and I really didn't understand. Also, my parents didn't have a sense of spirituality And I was like feeling wait a minute, aren't we like spiritual beings here? Like don't we need to nourish our souls? and nobody related to that. So in that sense, i went searching in a spiritual direction, into a number of different religions, searching for what gives meaning to life. I went searching for all in all those ways. So those were some difficult years of searching And eventually I found my way. Truly, when I found in my own heritage that there was wisdom I was never given. It was kind of tossed away, like with the whole wheat They get rid of the bread and they give you the white wonder bread, but it's like empty of the nutrients, like the nutrients were gone of what made it valuable. So I was able to get those back And that was really nourishing for my soul.

Porter: 7:20

So insight or introspection and these kinds of things, i think, make a huge difference when they're communicated, let alone communicated effectively, or passed down and some sort of a legacy, or family meetings or children's books, for example. But you said two things that now have me curious. One was strawberry shortcake and two was wonder bread. Why are you, i guess, standing on food for some of these descriptions? Is that a driver for you? Are you a foodie? What's your appeal.

Bracha Goetz: 7:49

Yeah, exactly, that's interesting that you picked it up. Why do I make those food analogies? Because what I suffered during those years of the searching was eating disordered behavior coming from my starving soul. That's what I finally realized where it was coming from.

Porter: 8:08

Alrighty, folks, stay tight and we'll be right back on Transacting Value,

Bracha Goetz: 9:04

What I suffered during those years of the searching was eating, disordered behavior coming from my starving soul. That's what I finally realized where it was coming from. Why was I desperately trying to fill myself up? Why did that emptiness be like the driving force of my life? It was a driving, but with addictions you just try to stuff in externalities and hoping that will fill. It fills it for a moment, it brings immediate gratification, but it doesn't bring lasting pleasure. So that's what was going on, fluctuating between intense dieting and uncontrollable binges. So it became a prison, a very narrow prison, where the walls were getting tighter and tighter And the prison is just made up of thoughts. In other words, these walls are being put up by the person themselves And the key really is within ourselves how to get out. But we don't know that. So until we get that wisdom, we do not know how to get out of the prison. And that's what it was about. The symptoms were that behavior for a deeper spiritual search that I was going on. I was acting it out with the food addictions and people could act it out through anxiety, depression, addictions. These are all different ways to acting out. Kind of that You could call it an existential angst. It's like this desperate feeling to understand the purpose of what are we doing here.

Porter: 10:41

Well, you said anxiety too, though, and so, in my experience, or in my perspective, i think anxiety is a little more attributed to potentially a fear of what's coming, or you start to sort of align with, maybe identifying to a degree, a lack of control of what's coming up, or you feel unprepared or something. But what you just said Exactly Well, but you just said anxiety, depression or these other emotions you listed, or ways to act out. Oh, wait a minute. Ok, i think I got it. So anxiety and depression, these things that are manifesting, for example, subconsciously, to fill this lack of insight and fulfillment that you have with yourself, is that more what you're saying?

Bracha Goetz: 11:23

Yes, and just what you said eating disorder behavior. it's all about control and trust. Like you were bringing up about, anxiety has to do with a lack of trust, a sense of being out of control in this world. When that changes, the perspective changes that you can really trust that there's an ultimate good purpose to this life and that you can trust that there's an ultimate goodness inside of you. Those two things change the entire picture and it changed my world from gray to a world of vivid color Again, like there used to be in childhood. the colors came back when my sense of trust and my sense of being able to, when you have that sense of trust, you don't have to be in control like that. That idea of letting go and letting God you know that's, that's what it's about.

Porter: 12:22

I like that, i like that. And obviously you said this was a journey for you. So this wasn't an overnight sensation. You just woke up and it clicked Right. So what did your journey entail? I think too often we hear spiritual and we think religion, but is it always? Is it often?

Bracha Goetz: 12:39

The basis of this whole spiritual journey. What was missing is the understanding of the power of gratitude. That's what I did not get. So what happened is what I came to learn on my spiritual journey. I was searching for the purpose of life, right. So I found it one summer and it was taught to me that the purpose of life is to experience the greatest pleasure possible. By this. An old rabbi who's no longer alive, rabbi Weinberg, he, when he said that it was like what Like pleasure? That sounds like hedonistic, but what are the greatest pleasures? Those are the pleasures that last, and it all boils down to gratitude. It's gratitude that lasts inside of us. So what he taught about was the pleasure ladder, which has five rungs on it, and what I realized is that it's our five fingers. We have within our hands the ability to bring pleasure into our life, lasting pleasure at any moment. That's so amazing. It changes everything. We become empowered, we're not out of control. We can trust again. We can bring pleasure into. We're not no longer dependent on these addictive substances, or dependent on gambling or shopping or relationships. No, we can bring pleasure into our lives at any moment. And these five levels? they correspond to the five levels of the human soul. So when we bring pleasure into our lives, it uplifts these five levels of our soul And it's universal how we can do this.

Porter: 14:29

OK, and then attached to us. So I assume there's a for everybody who's listening. Brock and I are talking on a video call But, brock, they can't see you. So the sign you're holding up these five rungs. Can you explain those?

Bracha Goetz: 14:41

Yes, So this is when you said it's not any particular religion And it transcends all religions because we're all part of one soul, one spiritual being. Really The lowest level are all the natural physical pleasures in this world. They were designed to uplift both our bodies and our souls. Or the natural food, being in nature, exercise, swimming, yoga, dancing, gardening, music All these sensual pleasures are designed to uplift us physically and spiritually when we experience them with gratitude. My favorite example is an orange, because it's just so simple. It shows you right there. It's green, it's camouflaged in with a tree until it's ripe and ready, and then it calls to you I'm ready. It becomes bright and beautiful to look at And it's great to smell. And then you open it up And the juicy, sweetness, the juiciness is kept in for months, individually packaged in this amazing peel, and when you finish it you have the seeds of eternity. They become infinite number of trees, infinite number of oranges. It's the most amazing thing. If you eat this mindfully, could you imagine? you'd be in spiritual ecstasy. So you compare that with an orange flavored tangy taffy. And even the wrapper pollutes the environment, while this wrapper of an orange? it fertilizes the soil. It's completely the opposite. An orange flavored tangy taffy is designed to get you to, just it's harmful. It creates that immediate pleasure and no lasting pleasure.

Porter: 16:33

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Bracha Goetz: 17:36

An orange-flavored tangy taffy is designed to get you to just. You know it's harmful. It creates that immediate pleasure and no lasting pleasure. So this fills you with gratitude and that actually harms your body, Like junk is designed to be delicious and addictive and the natural foods are designed, with infinite intelligence and infinite loving kindness, to be delicious and nutritious, like totally different. And that's just the lowest level.

Porter: 18:11

So Now there's still four others.

Bracha Goetz: 18:15

Yeah, i'll tell you really quick if you want to hear So then. So love is. How could love not be dependent on somebody else? That's the amazing thing. If a person is in solitary confinement in prison, they can bring love into their lives. Or in solitary confinement in an addiction, it's about focusing on the virtues of another. The person could think about a grandmother that once did a kindness for them and they are uplifted with this warm emotional feeling to become a better person. Just by focusing your thoughts on what you appreciate about someone else, you can bring love into your life at any moment, meaning doing something good and meaningful for someone else. This brings you to an even greater level of pleasure. So each level up, like the state of addiction, you're in. Disconnection, estrangement, loneliness all of these bring connection, like first to a thing an orange then to another person, a being, or to a pet, and then meaning doing something. Again you're reaching back with gratitude to help someone else. So like I was on another show and the guy said he ate two slices of pizza. He was feeling lonely, he was about to plow through the whole box of pizza by himself And there's a knock on his door and his neighbor needs help. For two minutes He helps his neighbor. Then he comes back. He doesn't want the pizza anymore. What happened? He just filled up. He filled up by helping somebody else And then he puts the rest of the pizza in the fridge for another day. This happens to all of us. It actually fills our souls, because that's where the real emptiness is. And then, higher than meaning, is creativity. It's when we put a unique part of ourselves into the world. We go into a zone where we don't feel like sleeping or eating. When we're being creative, like time is passing, we don't even know it. It's such a high. And the highest level of all is transcendence. That's when we transcend our own limitations, like we make that first crack in a habit, the first tiny crack in an addiction. We become a better version of ourselves. We bring out the goodness inside of us out into the world. We also, under a starry, starry night, we feel that connection with the whole universe. It's that sense of connection to everybody, everything and to source energy. When we recognize so, each level up is a greater level of connection And that's what brings us pleasure. The lack of pleasure is disconnection. So by bringing this into our lives, this is how we bring in pleasure And the price that we need to pay to climb each step on the ladder is just one thing, and that's gratitude. Gratitude is the price we pay for this lasting pleasure. It's recognizing all the gifts in our lives at every moment. I mean, we can't recognize all the gifts, but it's recognizing that we're gifted in every moment.

Porter: 21:39

Awareness, I think, makes the difference. Yeah, like you said, these things are all around us. The potential energy, i guess you could say, is everywhere.

Bracha Goetz: 21:49

Yes.

Porter: 21:50

Yes, well, here's an example A year ago, well, almost I guess I think we spoke in September last year And I didn't know. Really in hindsight I didn't know what I was doing Or specifically why I was doing it. Right, it was sort of a hobby. I had, i don't know, grown a little bit of familiarity with podcasting and with a message I wanted to sort of portray and maybe even causes to get behind, i think, at that point in time. But it was really just to showcase values for the sake of showcasing values, which is good. I think that's a good thing, but it doesn't accomplish anything. It's like a brochure, you know, like you see the information and it's there and it's maybe a good message, and then it stays there in the brochure, that's it. You do something with it or you don't. But it's like fishing without a fish finder or without chumming the water first or just hoping something's going to bite that day. It's not a bad day necessarily, it's just not the best day. Most efficient use of your time, right, anyway? so I think that's where I was about a year ago And, interestingly enough, you briefly brought up the pleasure letter last year as well. Not in such great detail, i don't think. But either way, you did. And since then, now hearing it again from you for a second time, in my case personally, it's interesting you bring that up. I think at that point in my life and in my perspective, what I was searching for personally, or maybe even interpersonally, was connection with other people, because I wasn't getting it in my life, and so talking to people like you on a podcast sort of gave me that opportunity to connect with people and identify, is my perspective. I don't want to say valid, but shared or shareable, yes, and if it is, how do I communicate that? More importantly, how do I interpret it when other people communicate it? And then so what, right? What do we do with it? And it sort of relegated itself to this brochure analogy, i think, since then, now hearing this a second time, having a better understanding of meaning and potential causes, impacts, practical application of discussing personal values. For example, rocky, have you heard of what's an example? The World Literacy Foundation? Yes, so which makes sense? as an author, i imagine you would have So that, for anybody listening, the World Literacy Foundation is an organization that attempts to well, help people become more literate across the world, not for the sake of just being able to read and write, whatever their respective languages happen to be, but also to better interpret their cultures and connect with people and encourage humanity. So that's sort of the premise there, not to oversell it, but that's sort of the premise for them And, for example, as a cause to establish meaning for them. It's not about reading books or writing books. It's about connecting with people and sharing humanity and learning and growing through life together. And from a social perspective, broca, what you've been able to do with your books in most cases, i think, intergenerationally between kids, grandparents, parents as they're reading these books to each other is something I started to align with since I first heard you talking last September. But socially, with people to talk, and how do you verbally communicate with people that how they view the world is impactful and has value? All right, folks, sit tight. We'll be right back on Transacting Value. Alrighty, folks, here at Transacting Value, we write and produce all the material for our podcast, in-house game perspective, alongside you, our listeners, and exchange vulnerability and dialogue with our contributors every Monday morning. But for distribution, buzzsprout's a platform to use. You want to know how popular you are in Europe or how Apple is a preferred platform to stream your interviews. Buzzsprout can do that. You want to stream with multiple players through an RSS or custom feed, or even have references and resources to take your podcast's professionalism, authenticity and presence to a wider audience. Buzzsprout can do that too. Here's how. Start with some gear that you already have in a quiet space. If you want to upgrade, buzzsprout has tons of guides to help you find the right equipment at the right price. Buzzsprout gets your show listed in every major podcast platform. You'll get a great looking podcast website, audio players that you can drop into other websites, detailed analytics to see how people are listening, tools to promote your episodes and more. Podcasting isn't hard when you have the right partners. The team at Buzzsprout is passionate about helping you succeed. Join over a hundred thousand podcasters already using Buzzsprout to get their message out to the world. Plus following the link in the show notes lets Buzzsprout know we sent you gets you a $20 credit if you sign up for a paid plan and helps support our show. You want more value for your values. Buzzsprout can do that too. How do you verbally communicate with people that how they view the world is impactful and has value, and these personal values that they bring to the table. These strengths they bring to the table gives everybody sort of a shared meaning and we can grow through our differences together. And I just wanted to share that for a few minutes. And I think I don't even know better words, more effective words, to use than because of identifying that cause and meaning and purpose behind this brand. Gratitude is the only response that I could have as a result.

Bracha Goetz: 27:21

Yes.

Porter: 27:21

Have you found in your process of writing these books well, almost close to four dozen now, that you realistically could have had any other outcome than increased gratitude.

Bracha Goetz: 27:33

Well, yes, i mean, if the opposite of gratitude really is ego. I feel there's an expression in the recovery community Ego stands for edging God out. It's when we try to just feel it's me, it's me doing this, it's me accomplishing this, and then you're in danger of falling, like you know how they say when you pat yourself on the back, you better have a hand ready to catch yourself. When you fall, you know, because that's what it feels like. Why? Because it's a disconnection. It's where we're cutting off that energy flow. We're not feeling grateful for just all the goodness that's being channeled through all of us to share with each other. That changes everything. It's a very unstable place to be when we're wrapped up in our ego, and any moment that we are, we're feeling more alone than when we're in gratitude.

Porter: 28:37

What sort of a? obviously there's been some impact, right? You mentioned Rabbi Weinberg earlier and obviously Israel. what sort of impact has Judaism played on your perspective? along your journey, you said you you looked at other religions and other belief systems and obviously have talked to plenty of people as you've been living, so I'm curious its impact.

Bracha Goetz: 28:56

Yeah, i gained from every religion that I studied. It made an impact in me during my search, but it didn't fit inside me like the perfect little puzzle piece I was missing because my soul was born Jewish, so that's what I needed. You know, each person needs what they need And it was. It's so fascinating to me. So the way it fit. When I got, finally, that puzzle piece, it was this amazing feeling. I remember I was drawing pictures during the classes that I went to in Israel and I drew this creature I love to draw creatures jumping off the wall, screaming yay, like I got it now. It was like such an amazing feeling. So it's not like the eating disorder behavior went away immediately at that moment. No, but it was a gradual thing that I found there was less of a need for this anymore. What's filling me up? And then I got it. Then I saw oh, now I understand why. Why did the addictions go away? Because I've been filling up with gratitude. Now I get it. And Judaism this is so interesting to me. I only discovered this years later. The word in Hebrew for Jewish people is Yuhudim, yuhudim, jewish. It sounds similar, but in Hebrew, yuhudim, in the middle of the word Yuhudim is hod hod, which means gratitude. It means a people of gratitude. That is our whole purpose for being here. That's what we're doing from morning till night. There are guidelines for blessings that I'm making. I'm saying all day long. From the minute I get up, the first words out of my mouth is thank you in Hebrew. And that's what I've been taught to do, and it's like meditations like this throughout the day before I eat, after I eat, even we have a blessing. After we go to the bathroom, we express our gratitude that our bodies are working And we don't have conoscopy bags I don't know what they're. Yeah, sad things. We just express gratitude so that we get in the habit of not taking things for granted as much. Yeah.

Porter: 31:20

Not taking things for granted. You said meditating. Throughout the day I hear meditation and I picture cross-legged on the floor pretty stereotypical meditation images, I think, But throughout the day, like an hour at a time. What does that mean? Yeah?

Bracha Goetz: 31:35

No, it's a little blessing, it's a little pause. Before I eat this orange, i say a sentence that I could say mindlessly. It can become wrote, but it also can become an opportunity for me actually to just soar into the cosmos while I'm standing on the floor. It's an opportunity for mindful gratitude. That's what it becomes, and I don't have to take that opportunity And anybody could take it. I mean, without the blessing too, by just recognizing how this got to you, how it's an expression of loving, kindness and an expression of such wisdom. For instance, if a person grew up with abuse or neglect in their childhood, they need so much loving kindness pouring into their life And it can actually help when you recognize that you are being mindfully loved every moment, if you open your eyes and you see it, because that's what a person needs to parent themselves if they never had a very loving childhood. There's so many opportunities in this world. The world, our natural world, is filled with loving, kindness and wisdom for us to see.

Porter: 32:55

And that's not even just children, though, I mean. This is people of any age You can start to work through this and think through gratitude. You know, i talked to a lady on the show her name's Ari last year And I forget exactly how she worded it back in November. Anybody listening you can find our conversation and listen to it specifically. But the point being, she said when she was growing up and she's in her 20s OK, so she said when she was growing up she didn't really remember that it was cool hearing about values like gratitude, for example, she said. But now, now that she's older, she thinks it's super cool to be gracious and show gratitude, because I think it's contagious And it gives people opportunities to build relationships on a deeper level than just how's the weather? Do you come here often? Is the line always this long or whatever? Showcasing an ability to have deeper conversations or build more impactful relationships with people in person or in conversations, i think is easier because you can see nonverbal responses. You can hear verbal responses or reactions to what you're saying. When you write a book, you can't You don't know who's going to read your book. So how do you convey those things written on paper and ensure that what you're trying to get across does?

Bracha Goetz: 34:14

How do you know? Well, i test them out with people, i know, and things like that. But now, of course, i get feedback from people all over the world.

Porter: 34:26

All right, folks sit tight, we'll be right back on Transacting Value. Who even talks about who we authentically are or why it seems like people care more about the characters they create than the character they have? Who even talks about what values are socially governing a business within a particular industry or which personal values are aligning a corporate vision? On Transacting Value, we do. Transacting Value is a podcast showcasing the role and impact of values and character development within the future of a respective industry mechanical, social, parental or any other industry that fits within a society. I'm Porter, i'm your host, i'm a millennial, long-distance father who's attempting to learn about people, teach about life and talk about values with complete strangers. No script, and we're inviting you to listen. In all of my deployments, one thing I've learned is that we need to increase dialogue showcasing the value of a value system and just start a civil conversation. Somehow, as Martin Luther King said, we're not judged by the color of our skin, but by the content of our character. To find where perspectives meet values. Join us every Monday at 9 AM Eastern Standard Time on all your favorite podcasting platforms, like directly from our website, transactingvaluepodcastcom, and we'll meet you there.

Bracha Goetz: 35:32

Well]. I test them out with people I know and things like that. But now of course, i get feedback from people all over the world Like I have books that prevent the sexual abuse of children, because again, that stops a soul from shining. It puts layers on top of the soul so you don't even know that your soul is still shining. You can't feel it because it gets covered up so that a person doesn't feel their soul shining And sometimes they need therapeutic intervention to remove all those layers so they can shine again. So again I hear from people like this book saved my child's life, things like that. I even have books about let's swim safely. There's basic things. If we don't have healthy bodies I have let's stay healthy. Healthy bodies are also essential. Some of my books are spiritual, like the Invisible Book, but some are about being safe, having a healthy body, because all of that is also essential for us to flourish in life and shine as beautifully as we possibly can.

Porter: 36:48

Yeah, i think the Invisible Book came out in the fall last year. Last time we were talking, i think you just released it right.

Bracha Goetz: 36:55

Oh, i know which book you mean. This is the newest book is. Don't Read This Book. That's the newest book. It's about the voice in your head, the impulsive voice that tries to get you to be miserable. The voice that tells you focus on what you're lacking rather than on what you have. This book took me 30 years to write because I did not have all the wisdom. I had the title. I had most of the book written, but it wasn't complete until last year when I realized this last missing piece, that voice inside our heads that we all have working to get us to be miserable. it's working all day long. So I didn't realize that that voice doesn't really want you to listen to it. It's resistance training. It's a personal trainer inside all our heads. We are meant to push it off And that's how we grow our gratitude muscles Pushing off that voice that we all have saying if you only have that, then you'd be happy. So you go, oh no, i know if I'm happy with what I have right now. that's how I really grow my gratitude muscles.

Porter: 38:15

What a cool thought. Impulse is a resistance trainer and it's baked in. Yes, baked in. What a cool perspective. Yeah, i never actually thought about that.

Bracha Goetz: 38:24

I know It took me so many years to understand that this world is really a world meant for goodness, ultimate goodness for all of us. We all go through pain, we all go through challenges, but knowing that there's an ultimate good purpose changes everything, the whole reason we were created. This is what I didn't understand growing up. No one explained this stuff to me. There's a cosmic oneness, but what is missing from a cosmic oneness other? Because a oneness is everything. So there's an illusion of withdrawal. An illusion of withdrawal so that we can have the relationship. So we, our whole purpose for being here, is to live in gratitude, to experience the pleasure that the cosmic oneness wants us to experience. Here, instead, we pretend we're not in a garden, we forget that and we create all kinds of problems, but really our whole purpose for being here is to experience this world in gratitude.

Porter: 39:30

I couldn't think of a better note to end this conversation on The fact that you can take you specifically Raka can take all of these influences in your life and all of these memories and all of these issues and all of these problems and all of these great and wonderful experiences you've had in your life and then ultimately find a way to distill them down to I don't know three, four, five, nine year olds that also resonate with people in their fifties, forties, sixties, eighties. Unbelievable progress you've made in your life. Thank you, unreal, absolutely.

Bracha Goetz: 40:03

Thank you so much.

Porter: 40:04

If anybody wants to reach out to you or obviously you know. Look in more of your books. Find out more about the bookshop where do people go and how do they do?

Bracha Goetz: 40:13

it. Thank you so much for how you resonate. I love it. Thank you so deeply. My youngest children created the website getsbookshopcom. You could find all my books there, of course, on Amazon too. Anyone that doesn't have the money to buy books, just get it in your public library. We want the messages out there. The libraries are happy to get the books and spread these messages to just create more joy in everybody's life. Yeah.

Porter: 40:45

All right. Well, for everybody listening, we'll have links to getsbookshop and we'll throw out a couple links for you guys. I know you're still on social media as well, so we'll put that in for everybody listening. Whatever your podcast streaming player is, click see more or click show more for the description, and you'll be able to see the links there, and that way you can also access Brock's website and the getsbookshop through the description as well. Brock, we're out of time. I really do appreciate you coming back and talking for a little bit and hanging out, and I mean, to a degree, reteaching some of this stuff, but also bringing up a few new points. So again, thank you, and thank you to your kids for setting up this bookshop and helping spread your message and, obviously, your illustrator and all the other inspirations in your life For everybody else listening. Thank you for tuning in and listening to our November core values of gratitude, appreciation and resilience. I'd also like to thank our show sponsors Keystone Farmers Market, hoeven-clucker Farms and, obviously, buzzsprout for your distribution. Thank you as well. Now, folks, if you're interested in joining our conversations or you want to discover our other interviews, check out TransactingValuePodcastcom and follow along on social media while we continue to stream new interviews every Monday at 9am Eastern Standard Time on all your favorite podcasting platforms. But until next time, that was TransactingValue.